Big Bro Donatello
by Goddess Hanyuu
Summary: This takes place before the Turtles met April. They act in dark alleys so no one can see them. When they save a little girl, they have to take her home with them. The girl is scared at first, but eventually grows a bond with them... especially Donatello!
1. The Beginning

A new fanfic about a very old cartoon series. This story is based on the original TMNT series, which I used to watch as a kid (even though I'm a girl and girls "aren't supposed to watch that kind of cartoons, since it's for boys only" GAHH!!). I recently started to watch the series again (yay! ^^) and I remember that Donatello was always my favorite Turtle (why? I have no idea). This idea had been spooking in my head lately, so let's try it out! :D

Hope you like it!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Wish I did!**

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It took place not that long before the Turtles first met April. They were not yet aware of the existence of the Shredder, nor of the fact that the Foot Clan was in New York. The Foot Clan was not active at that time. Leonardo, Donatello, Rafael and Michelangelo did not yet have that much experience in fighting yet. True, they were already master in each their own weapon, but they hadn't used their ninjitsu skills on many real people. All they could do for now, was protect the city against small criminal gangs and robbers, that sort of thing. Which was quite hard to do while hiding their identity from everyone. Therefore, they mostly acted in very dark places like alleys. And in one of those alleys, they met someone they will never forget, but has already forgotten about them.

It was a simple attack on a little girl by another one of those simple gangs of teenagers.

"What'cha you doing here all alone?" asked one of the guys.

"Didn't yo' mama tell ya not to go outside all alone at night?" asked another one.

"Got some money on ya?" asked a third guy.

The girl backed away and tried to run. One of the guys, however, grabbed the collar of her jacket and pulled her up, off the ground.

"You'd better co-operate here, missy," he said.

"I don't have any money!" screamed the poor little girl, desperately struggling her way out.

"Fine," said the guy who held her. He threw her back on the ground and said to his two buddies: "Make sure she won't talk."

The two guys, immediately understanding what they were told to do, started to beat the girl.

"I won't talk!" she begged. "I won't say a word!"

"Keep it up," said the leader. "Just in case."

"Stop it!" said a new voice. The leader of the small gang looked around to see where it was coming from. But it was too dark to see anything.

Suddenly, he got punched and fell on the floor.

"Ah! What the…!" he mumbled.

The other two stopped their actions and cautiously looked around. Then they also got punched in the face and fell on the floor.

"'the Heck is happening?!" yelled the leader.

He couldn't see who was attacking them. Suddenly, all he could see was a shadow, pointing a long sword at him.

"I'd run if I were you," said the same voice. "We don't easily forgive pathetic scum who attack innocent people."

There were four of them. Each was pointing their weapon at the three teens and one was holding the little girl, who seemed to have lost conscience.

"Let's get outta here!" said the leader, and he and his two companions ran for it.

The Turtles withdrew their weapons.

"Oh sure," said Raphael, looking how the three 'tough' guys took off. "Beating up a toddler, no problem. But when they meet the _real_ deal…"

"How's she doing, Donatello?" asked Leonardo. He walked towards Donatello, who was holding the girl. Michelangelo followed him. Raphael looked from the running guys to the poor girl they had beaten up and couldn't help but feel sorry for her.

"They hit her in the face," said Donatello, pointing at her black eye.

"Those bastards!" said Michelangelo. "We shouldn't have let them get away."

"Well we can't take them to the police, can we?" said Raphael. "I don't think they'll just take them over from four mutated turtles with just a happy grin and a 'thank you'."

"Still, it sucks, dude," said Michelangelo. "Look at her."

"Hey, look," said Donatello. "Her eyes are open." He waved his hand in front of her face, but she didn't respond.

"I wonder if she can even see us," said Leonardo.

"Can you hear me?" asked Donatello. "It's alright. You're safe now."

The girl looked up. All she could see were four pairs of eyes looking at her. Then she didn't see anything anymore.

"She passed out," said Donatello.

Leonardo sighed. "I guess we have no other choice than to take her home," he said.

"Do we have to?" asked Raphael. "I mean… she's a kid! And she'll probably be freaked out when she sees us."

"Then what do you suggest, Raphael?" asked Leonardo. "Leave her right here while she needs help?"

Raphael sighed. "Can't do that…" he mumbled.

"Then let's go," said Leonardo.

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**Hope I'm leaving them in character enough (A) Please R&R thank you! ^^**

**P.S. Also see my earlier fanfics: "Why Kakashi wears a Mask" (Naruto) and "After the Elf Died" (Elfen Lied - based on the manga series, not the anime!!)**


	2. Talking Turtles!

"Are you sure?"

"Well, she _did_ just move…"

"D'you think it's wise for all of us to stand here while she's waking up?"

"Michelangelo's right. Maybe just one of us should stay here and the rest of us get some pizza."

"Alright! Pizza!"

"Shh! Alright, Donatello, you're probably best suited to keep her calm."

"Me? Why me?"

"Guys, her eyes are open. Let's get outta here."

The first thing the girl saw after she opened her eyes, were three shades running away and one pair of eyes staring at her. She couldn't see properly yet.

"Umm… hi," said Donatello. "How're you feeling?"

The girl slowly sat up to have a better look at who was talking to her. When her vision was finally back to normal, she saw Donatello. A turtle.

It took some time for her to get it. A turtle was talking to her. But turtles can't talk… or walk, stand or sit like humans…

When it finally got through to her, a boost of adrenaline got through her body and she backed against the wall, at the head of the bed she was on.

"Don't be scared," said Donatello quickly. "I'm just a talking turtle. No biggie, right? Hehe…"

The girl didn't move nor speak. She was carefully watching every move Donatello made.

Donatello, who was not quite sure what to do with this, sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Listen," he said. "You were attacked by those punks last night. We saved you. So you can trust us, ok?"

The girl felt at her black eye.

"They did that to you," said Donatello. "If we had come much later…"

She clearly didn't trust him.

"Umm…" tried Donatello again, "Does anything else hurt? 'Cause if you're hurt, I'll have a look and see what I can do to make you feel better."

"Who _are_ you?" asked the girl.

"So you _can_ talk," said Donatello. "I'm Donatello. What's your name?"

The girl looked around. "Where am I?" she asked.

"You're not gonna answer _my _question first?" asked Donatello. "Kids… Anyway, you're in the sewers of New York City. We live here."

"Why did you bring me here?" asked the girl.

"Well, we don't know your name and address, so where else were we supposed to bring you?" asked Donatello. "You keep rubbing your arm. Does it hurt? Here, let me take a look…"

"Don't touch me!" yelled the girl when Donatello reached his hand out to her arm. She kicked his hand away in panic."

"Ow! Hey, what was that for?!" said Donatello, who stood up.

The girl flinched. He must have scared her, yelling at her and standing up so quickly like that. She must be thinking he was going to hit her.

Donatello calmed down and said in a calm voice: "I'm trying to help you. You can trust me."

"This is just a nightmare… It's not real… Turtles don't talk…" she mumbled to herself in panic. "Wake up, come on, wake up, wake up, wake up…"

"Hey, easy," said Donatello. "I keep telling you, we're the good guys. We won't hurt you."

When he reached out to her again, the girl screamed: "Stay back!"

"Alright!" said Donatello, who was starting to lose his patience. "Alright. See? I'm going to stand over here now. Ok? What do I have to do to prove I'm not a bad guy?"

The girl looked at him. He was indeed standing on a safe distance.

"Let… let me go," she said.

Donatello fell silent for a brief moment. Then he said: "I can't. I'm sorry."

"Why not?" asked the girl.

"We're still deciding on what to do with you," said Donatello. "We can't just let you go now."

The girl looked down with a disappointed sigh.

"H-hey, how about a pizza?" asked Donatello. "You haven't eaten since last night, right?"

The girl looked at him. "Pizza?" she asked.

Then she got an idea.

"Umm… yeah, I'll have some," she said.

"Really?" asked Donatello. "Ok, wait right here. I'll be right back."

He entered the kitchen, which was next to the sleeping room, where the others were quietly listening… except for Michelangelo, who was stuffing himself with pizza.

"See?" said Leonardo. "You're more patient than we all are. I told you you could do it."

"I guess so," said Donatello.

"Umm dude, sorry but I have my doubts about that," said Michelangelo.

"And why's that?" asked Donatello.

"'Cause she's beatin' it!" said Michelangelo.

Everyone looked at the sleeping room. They saw her disappear behind the corner.

"Quick! After her!" said Leonardo.

They chased her into the sewers. The girl had no clue where to go. Anything was better than staying with those monsters. She found a place to hide.

"You see her anywhere?"

"Nope."

"Let's spread out. She can't be far."

"She's probably hiding."

The girl was hiding in a pitch black corner with a very low ceiling. She could see two pairs of feet running past her. She could hear them fade away. She decided to wait a little longer before she would get out. But she didn't even have the chance to wait.

"Found you," said Raphael with a smirk. When she looked into his eyes, she quickly stood up and ran for it. But she didn't get any far before Raphael grabbed her by her wrist and lifted her from the floor.

"Gotcha!" he said. The girl tried to free herself, but it was no use.

"You sure are a pain in the shell, kid," said Raphael. "Hey guys! I got her!"

"No!! Let me go!!" screamed the girl. "LET ME G—"

Raphael put his hand on her mouth. The girl started to struggle even more.

"Good job, Raphael," said Leonardo as the Turtles were reuniting. "Now… What'll we do with you?" he asked the girl. They took her back to their house.


	3. My Name is Naomi

The girl was tied to a chair, trying to struggle out of it.

"Let me go!" she kept screaming.

"I'm sorry," said Donatello. "But clearly you won't just sit still and listen to us."

"We just want you to answer some questions," said Leonardo. "We'll untie you if you answer them."

The girl stopped struggling.

"Promise?" she asked.

"Yeah, we promise," said Michelangelo while the others were nodding.

"Ok then," mumbled the girl.

"Good," said Leonardo. "First: what's your name?"

Donatello spotted a wound on the girl's left arm. He went for the kitchen to get a towel and something to prevent it from infecting – if they even had stuff like that – while still listening to the conversation.

"Naomi," said the girl.

"How old are you, Naomi?" asked Leonardo.

"Almost 10," answered Naomi.

"And what were you doing all alone in an alley last night?" asked Raphael.

Naomi fell silent and looked at her feet.

Donatello came back with a towel and some antibiotics. When he put some of the stuff on the towel and started cleaning the wound, Naomi flinched again.

"N-no–"

"It's ok," said Donatello. "I know it stings, but bear with it for a bit."

Naomi looked at Donatello. Even though she found him and the others monsters, he was being so kind to her. She didn't understand anything anymore.

"Well?" asked Raphael. "You gonna answer my question or not?"

Naomi looked at Raphael, but didn't say anything. Then she looked back to Donatello, who had finished cleaning the wound and wrapped the towel around her arm.

"Come on, Naomi," he said before he looked at her. "You don't wanna be tied up forever, do you?"

"I… I can't talk about it," said Naomi.

"Then we can't let you go," said Raphael, losing his patience.

"Boys, boys, what are you doing?" asked a voice coming from another room. "That is no way to treat a lady."

When Naomi saw a huge rat entering the room, walking on two legs, wearing clothes and talking, she screamed.

"What _is_ this place?!" she screamed.

"Oh my," said Splinter. "I'm sorry if I scared you with… the way I look. Why did you tie her up?"

"'Cause she keeps running away, sensei," said Michelangelo.

"There are better solutions than tying up this child," said Splinter strictly. "You must forgive my students, they still have a lot to learn."

Naomi was shaking. She couldn't believe she was talking to a rat and a bunch of turtles.

Splinter could see how scared she was.

"You have been through a lot, my poor child," he said. "This kind of hardships of this world is still difficult for me to understand. Oh, forgive me, where are my manners? My name is Hamato Yoshi, but you can call me Splinter." He looked at Donatello, who was still beside Naomi. "Donatello, untie her, please," he said calmly.

Donatello did as he was told. Naomi stayed on the chair, even when she was loose.

"Just who are you all?" she asked.

Splinter told her the whole story. About how he was banned from the Foot Clan, how he started to live in the sewers with the rats and turtles, how he and the turtles became mutated, how he learned them ninjitsu, everything.

Somehow, this story was calming Naomi down.

"So… you're actually human, like me?" she asked.

"Yes," said Splinter. "I just look a little different. And we humans… well… we don't like 'different'. Of course, my mutation – and the mutation of the Turtles, of course – has given me a new opinion about 'different'."

"Now that you've heard our story, how about telling yours now?" asked Leonardo.

"Like I said, I can't tell you," said Naomi.

"Why not?" asked Michelangelo. "It's not like we're gonna tell anyone, you know?"

Naomi looked at him. He had a point.

Without looking at anyone, she said: "I live in an orphanage. My parents and brother died in a car accident while I was sick at home. That was last year."

"I am sorry to hear that," said Splinter. The Turtles also looked at her with pity in their eyes.

"I was really confused when my babysitter got that phone call," said Naomi. "I couldn't believe it had really happened."

A tear was dropping from her eye.

"I don't have any other relatives, so I was taken to the orphanage," she continued. "But I hate it there. They make me go to therapy. They treat me like I'm crazy. I'm sick of it! So yesterday…"

"… you ran away," finished Donatello. Naomi nodded.

"You know, running away won't make your situation any better," said Leonardo.

"Please don't make me go back!" said Naomi quickly.

"Oh, don't you worry about that," said Raphael. "You're not going anywhere for now."

"What Raphael means," said Donatello, "is that we won't let you go out there all alone."

"What are you saying, Donatello?" asked Leonardo.

"I'm suggesting that we keep her here, at least for a while," said Donatello. "This is the safest place you can be. No one ever comes to the sewers."

"I'm not gonna babysit her," said Raphael.

"Like I'd let ya," said Naomi, getting pissed off by his attitude.

"Hey hey, guys, chill out," said Michelangelo.

"Fine," said Naomi. She stood up and headed for the door. "I'm outta here. I won't bother you ever again. Goodbye."

"Hold it right there," said Leonardo. "Donatello's right. It's dangerous on the streets of New York, Naomi. You can't make it on your own out there. You're staying here."

"Besides," said Donatello, "we still gotta make sure you won't tell anyone about us. As soon as we find a place for you to stay, that is."

"Until then, you are welcome to live here," said Splinter.

"No, I am _forced_ to live here," said Naomi.

"Come come, it is for your own good," said Splinter. "Now, how about something to eat? You must be hungry by now."

"No, I'm not," said Naomi. But right after she said it, her stomach growled loudly. Her face immediately flushed red.

"Your stomach doesn't seem to agree with you on that," said Raphael with a smirk.

"Shut up," said Naomi.

"You little brat," said Raphael. "You can't tell me what to do in my own home!"

"Guys, what did I just tell ya?" said Michelangelo. "Chill out."

"Hmpf," mumbled Raphael.

"Naomi," said Donatello, who had followed her and now laid his hand on her shoulder. "I'll make you a pizza." And as he was guiding her to the kitchen, he asked: "You like whipped cream and peanut butter on your pizza?"


	4. Stay or Go?

_PING!_

The pizza was done. Donatello took it out of the oven and put it on a plate for Naomi. Naomi, however, didn't touch it. All she did was stare in front of her.

"Come on, Naomi," said Donatello. "Al least have a slice."

"I'm not hungry," said Naomi.

"But you gotta eat," said Donatello. "You're still growing."

"I am pretty sure that pizzas with whipped cream will _not_ help me grow that much," said Naomi.

Donatello sighed. "What am I gonna do with you," he said. "I can't force you to eat."

Naomi didn't respond.

"So you're planning to starve to death?" he asked.

"I'm just not feeling very well," said Naomi. She stood up. "Look, can I just be alone for a while?"

"Hmm… sure," said Donatello. "Let's go back to the bedroom – and take this pizza with you, in case you change your mind – and there you can be alone."

The others were in the living room watching TV (except for Splinter who was meditating in his own room). It was next to the other side of the bedroom. Donatello left Naomi by herself. When he had left the room, he closed the door, took out the key and locked it. Then he went to sit next to his brothers.

"Dude, did you just lock her in?" asked Michelangelo.

"Can't just leave her alone so she could escape again, now can I?" said Donatello.

Meanwhile, Naomi was lying on the bed and staring at the pizza.

_Who could possibly eat that kind of stuff?_ she thought. _I guess… four monster turtles and a rat do._

She put her finger in the whipped cream and tasted it.

_Hm, not bad…_

She took a bite out of the pizza.

_Hey, this is pretty good…_

Before she knew, she ate the whole pizza. While eating, she looked at her left arm. The towel was almost slipping off. She thought of Donatello taking care of her arm. And he was also trying to get along with her while she kept calling them monsters. He was taking care of her while she kept rejecting him. Why, she wondered?

After about an hour, she made her decision. She wanted to stay here. She figured these guys were trying to help her and they were being kind to her – except for that Raphael guy.

When she tried to open the door, she found that it was locked.

"What the…" she said. "Hey!! Open up!!" She kept trying to open it. _Oh, what's his name again?_ she thought. _Don… Don… Oh, right!_ "Donatello!" she yelled. "Donatello!!!"

"Dude, is she calling your name?" asked Michelangelo.

"Huh?" asked Donatello. He stood up and walked towards the door.

"Donatello!" he heard a muffled voice call him.

"Hey, you're right," he said. "Naomi? Naomi, calm down! What's wrong?"

"'What's wrong'?!" repeated Naomi. "You locked me in, _that's_ what's wrong!!"

"Were you planning to escape again?" asked Donatello while grabbing the key.

"What? No, I'm not gonna run away!" said Naomi. "I'm…" She stopped trying to open the door and fell silent for a few seconds. "I'm… staying," she said.

Donatello looked at his brothers, who were just as confused as he was. He unlocked and opened the door, and there she was, standing still and not trying to run away again.

"You're staying?" repeated Donatello. "Wait, you're not scheming anything, are you?"

Naomi shook her head. She looked at her wounded arm and touched the towel wrapped around it. Donatello saw it was almost slipping off and rewrapped it around her arm again.

"So let me get this straight," said Leonardo. "Just a moment ago, you were scared of us… and now you're willing to stay?"

"If… you'll accept me," she said while looking at Raphael.

"Of course we will," said Leonardo. "Right, guys?"

"Yeah," said Donatello first.

"Sure, why not?" said Raphael, obviously forcing a smile.

"Awesome!" said Michelangelo. "This dudette is stayin' with us!"

Donatello looked into the bedroom and found an empty plate on the bed Naomi had been lying. He looked at her and saw some whipped cream on the corner of her mouth.

"So you _did_ like it, huh?" he said with a grin while wiping the cream off her face with his finger.

A slight blush appeared on Naomi's cheeks. "It's not bad," she mumbled.

"Hey guys," said Raphael. "Isn't it about time for us to check the alleys, see if we can find some more scum?"

"Yeah, it should be dark enough up there by now," said Donatello.

"Can I come?" asked Naomi. "I could really use some fresh air and I promise I won't be in the way."

"No, Naomi," said Donatello. "It's way too dangerous for little girls out there."

"Ahw, come on!" said Naomi. "The smell in here is making me nauseous! Besides, you said you're ninjas, right? Then I wanna see you in action."

"No way, kid," said Raphael. "We can't fight and babysit at the same time."

"Besides, it's mondo darko out there," said Michelangelo. "You can't see us anyways."

"I'll go ask master Splinter to look after her," said Leonardo.

"Come on, Donatello," said Naomi. "You wanted to prove to me that you're the good guys, right?"

"Yeah, I did," said Donatello. "And taking you with us into dangerous dark alleys would prove that we're no good guys at all, don't you think? No, you just stay here with master Splinter. In the meantime, you can think of another – and _safer_ – way for us to gain your trust."

"Do not worry, my sons," said Splinter when he and Leonardo entered the room. "I am sure Naomi and I will have a great time. Now be careful out there."

"Of course, sensei," said Leonardo.

"See ya later, Naomi," said Michelangelo.

"Yeah, have fun," said Donatello.

"Come back safely," said Splinter. And as the Turtles made their way out, he said to Naomi: "Now, how about a game? There is a game I used to play a lot when I was a child. Do you know how to play Mah-jong?"

"Mah-what now?"

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**To tell you the truth, I don't know what the heck that game is all about, either (A)**

**I'd like to thank everyone who have already subscribed to my fanfics and added this story to their Story Alert, and of course for the great reviews I already got on this one. I'm really, really flattered and very glad people like it. So thank you very much! :D**

**Of course, I'm still looking forward to more reviews, since I still want to improve my writing skills, so please keep up the comments and I'll keep up the story ^^ Thank you :)**


	5. The First Night

When the Turtles returned to their home, they found Naomi sleeping on the couch. Splinter was sitting on the floor, watching over her.

"Yo, master Splinter," said Michelangelo. "We're back."

"Welcome back," said Splinter. "The dear child fell asleep in the middle of our game."

"Hehey, look at her," laughed Michelangelo. "She looks pretty cute when she's asleep."

Donatello looked at her and smiled. "Yeah," he said. "Never knew that kids could look so innocent when they're asleep."

"It sure is better than when she's awake," said Raphael.

"Sure does something to you, huh?" said Leonardo. "Anyway, let's not wake her up and go to sleep, too. Tomorrow we will figure out what to do with her."

It was only two hours after they went to sleep when Naomi woke up. It took some time for her to remember where she was. She looked around and sighed. _So it wasn't a dream_, she thought. She looked at the clock on the wall. It was 3 a.m.. She lay back down, but couldn't fall asleep anymore. The thought of living in a sewer with five mutants still took some time for her to get used to. She looked at the clock again. Now it was 3:45. She stood up and walked around. She entered the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. It was crammed with pizzas! _Do these guys eat pizzas only?!_ she wondered. Thank goodness, they had some milk in the door of the refrigerator. Now all she had to find was a glass.

"I _thought_ I heard something," she heard a voice from behind her say. She turned around and saw Donatello standing in the door opening. "What are you up to?" he asked suspiciously before he saw a bottle of milk in her hand.

"I… I was just looking for a glass," said Naomi.

"Oh," said Donatello. "It's right over there. I'll get one for you."

"Thanks," said Naomi.

"Can't sleep?" asked Donatello while getting her a glass.

"No," said Naomi.

"How come?" asked Donatello. He handed her a glass and Naomi helped herself.

"I don't know," she said. "I guess I'm still confused about all this and… this milk is expired."

Huge lumps fell into the glass.

"Oh, sorry," said Donatello. He took the glass and the bottle and put them on the kitchen table. "But hey, you'll get used to this place. Come on, let's go back to the living room. I'll stay there with you until you fall asleep, ok?"

Naomi stared at him.

"_I'll __stay right here until you fall asleep."_

He reminded her of someone.

But even with Donatello sitting next to her, she couldn't sleep. She rather felt awkward.

"So, umm…" started Donatello to fill up the silence. "Are you… always having trouble sleeping?"

"You know, you don't _have_ to stay here if you don't want to," said Naomi.

"No, it's cool," said Donatello. "Besides, I can't sleep either."

Naomi looked at the ceiling. Without looking at Donatello, she said: "I'm sorry for kicking you earlier."

"What? Oh, that," said Donatello. "It's ok. To tell you the truth, it didn't even hurt."

Naomi smiled. With her eyes still focussed on the ceiling, she said: "It's been a while since anyone had ever taken care of me like that."

"Oh?" asked Donatello.

"You see," said Naomi, "ever since I live in the orphanage, I've had no one to really care about, or who cared about me. I mean, the other kids back there are nice and all, but for some reason I can't really get along with them. I'm not interested in those games they're always playing. And the caretakers… well… they were just doing their job. Not exactly bonding with us. The therapist is always pretending he's my friend, but that's just… I dunno. I can't feel any kind of connection… to anyone."

Donatello was scratching the back of his head.

"You know," said Donatello, "you sure don't sound like a nine-year-old to me. You're talking like a grown-up right now, you know that?"

Naomi smiled and looked at him. "Maybe I've already grown up," she said. "And if that's the case, you can let me come with you from now on when you go outside."

Donatello laughed. "Ok, I'm taking it back," he said. "You're still a kid."

Naomi gave him an angry look. "Thanks a lot," she said sarcastically.

After a short silence, she asked: "Have you ever had any humans down here?"

"No," answered Donatello. "You're the first human to come down here except for master Splinter."

"Must be weird, huh?" asked Naomi. "To have me here while you're hiding from every other human in the world…"

"I guess so," said Donatello. "But… you're not much different from us. I mean, you're still a kid, of course, but I think we can get along."

Naomi yawned and closed her eyes. "You think I could… stay here for a bit longer?" she asked sleepily. "They'll never find me here."

"I hope you can," said Donatello. "But it's not only up to me, it's also…" He saw that she had already fallen asleep. He smiled and petted her head. "Good night," he whispered. He stood up, but then Naomi hung on to his wrist band. He tried to get loose, but her grip was too firm. Did she want him to stay?

He decided to sit back down and just sleep right here. He smiled at her one more time and then he also fell asleep.

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**Pretty cheesy, huh? :P**

**And that is how far I got for now. I've been writing four nights in a row (yes, I have too much free time on my hands during this summer vacation) but now I'm having kind of a writer's block (basically 30 minutes just staring at a blank Microsoft Word page and not coming up with anything). With school starting next week, I hope I can come up with a few more chapters during the first weeks when it's not so busy yet.**

**Of course, once again, I'd like to thank everyone who's read this so far and subscribed and/or reviewed this story (and those who didn't subscribe or review but still read it :P). It's really great to know that people like it ^^**

**I hope I'll find my inspiration back soon so I can upload new chapters again! :)**


	6. Raph and Naomi: Fire and Water!

When Naomi woke up, Donatello was already gone. She stood up and headed for the kitchen, where Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael and Splinter were having breakfast – which was pizza with cereal for the Turtles and sushi for Splinter.

"Good morning," said Leonardo. "Here, have some."

"Morning," said Naomi, rubbing sleep out of her eyes. "Where's Donatello?"

"He got up earlier," said Michelangelo. "Said he finally got some inspiration."

"He's probably inventing stuff right now," said Raphael. "You should stay out of his way while he's working."

"He invents stuff?" asked Naomi.

"The craziest things," said Leonardo. "Usually, he fixes anything that's broken around here, but he'd rather spend time inventing his own machines. Don't know what he's up to now, though."

"That's really cool," said Naomi. "So… what do _you_ guys do for fun?"

"Well, I know nothing about technology and stuff," said Michelangelo, "but I love to explore the sewers on my Cheapskate."

"'Cheapskate'?" asked Naomi.

"His skateboard," said Raphael.

"Oh, cool!" said Naomi. "Can I come with you sometime?"

"Sure, why not?" said Michelangelo. "Maybe I could teach you some moves."

"Awesome," said Naomi.

"Hang on a second," said Raphael. "'Sometime'? By that time, you'll be out of here. Weren't we going to decide what to do with her today?"

"Well yeah, but we're missing one Turtle," said Leonardo. "It's a decision we'll have to make together and everyone will have to agree."

"Leonardo is right," said Splinter. "We must make this decision – whatever it may be – as a group."

"Then let's go get Donatello and get on with it already," said Raphael.

Naomi stood up and pointed at him. "Just what is your problem?!" she yelled.

"_You're_ the problem," said Raphael, who stood up as well. "We don't have time for insolent brats like you!"

"_I'm_ insolent?!" said Naomi. "_You're_ the one who's constantly criticising me! I never asked to be brought here in the first place!"

"If that's how you feel, then just get out!" yelled Raphael. "I don't care if you tell anyone about us! No one will believe a kid like you anyway!"

Both looked like they were going to start a fight.

"Raphael," said Splinter, preventing him to get closer to her. Leonardo did the same thing with Naomi, just in case.

"Listen, dude," said Michelangelo. "If you're seriously gonna fight this kid, then you're no better than those punks who beat her."

"And _you're _no match for this guy," said Leonardo to Naomi. "So don't even think about challenging him or any of us."

"That's right," said Splinter. "Fighting will not form a solution to our current situation. We must remain calm and come up with a solution that will be best for all."

Raphael and Naomi calmed down. As Raphael sat back down on his chair, Naomi left the kitchen.

"Naomi, wait," said Leonardo. He went after her. "Where are you going?"

Naomi stopped and turned around to face him. She was crying, which was a real surprise to Leonardo.

"Hey, why are you crying?" he asked.

"What did I do wrong?" asked Naomi. "Why is he being so mean to me?"

Leonardo blinked. He was surprised that she even cared about that!

"Wrong? You did nothing wrong… well… that is… umm…" He couldn't figure out what to say. He sighed and said: "Look, I'll go talk to him, ok? You stay here and umm… watch some TV."

He left her in the living room and gave Raphael an angry look when he entered the kitchen.

"Nice going, Raphael," he said. "You got her upset."

"Huh?" asked Raphael. He looked at the door opening, where Naomi was standing with very teary eyes… and a big evil smirk.

"Why you little…!" said Raphael. He stood up and before the others had a chance to stop him, he lifted Naomi up and carried her on one shoulder.

"Raphael!" said Splinter. "What did I just tell you about violence?"

"I'm just gonna give this kid a piece of my mind," said Raphael. "Privately."

And as he took her to the living room, Naomi said angrily: "Let go of me!"

"Sure, no problem," said Raphael. He dropped her on the sofa. Naomi sat up quickly and found a very pissed off looking Raphael in front of her.

"Are you trying to turn my own brothers against me?" he asked.

A smirk appeared on Naomi's face again.

"Consider it payback for humiliating me," she said. "I can cry whenever I want. Even now."

"That's it, I've had it with you," said Raphael. "I'm gonna make sure you're outta here by tomorrow!"

"B-but… Where do I go?" asked Naomi. "What if those guys find me again? O-or if someone else will try and attack me?"

"You should've thought about that before you even decided to run away," said Raphael.

"I know," said Naomi. "I didn't think it all through. But since that attack… I'm…"

She started to cry again. Raphael was not sure if she was faking again or that this was for real. He couldn't help but feel sorry for her again. He sighed.

"Alright, alright," he said. "We'll… find something for you."

Immediately after he said it, the evil smirk appeared on Naomi's face once again.

"Good, now that that's settled," she said, "I'm gonna get some breakfast."

"What the…? You sneaky little twerp," said Raphael. He couldn't believe he actually fell for it.

Naomi laughed and jumped off the couch, heading for the kitchen again. In the door opening, she turned to him and said: "The truth is, Raphael: I really don't care what you think of me!" Then she laughed again and entered the kitchen, leaving three Turtles in confusion while Splinter was amused.

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**Yes, the kid is a brat :P As expected from a 9-year-old runaway ;)**

**I'm so glad, I got even more great reviews and already many people have added this story to Story Alert or Favorites. I'm really flattered that so many people like it, so thank you all very much!! =D**


	7. Donatello's Lab Partner

Donatello was focussing hard on what he was doing. He couldn't stop working, because he was afraid he'd lose his inspiration.

_If I keep this up, it'll be finished in just a few days_, he thought.

"What'cha doin'?" asked a child's voice out of the blue. Donatello startled and looked on his left. Naomi was looking at his unfinished invention.

"Don't surprise me like that," said Donatello. "You almost gave me a heart attack."

"What's this?" asked Naomi.

"This is a new invention," explained Donatello. "I came up with the idea last night. You can use it as a wristband, but when you press the button, a protective shield will appear around you."

"Really?" asked Naomi. "Can I help?"

Donatello laughed. "I don't think so," he said. "This isn't a toy. Besides, I don't think you know much about technology."

"I can learn," said Naomi.

"No, Naomi," said Donatello. "Maybe you could help the others."

"Ahw… ok," said Naomi disappointed. "Later."

"Later," said Donatello. He was looking for something. As Naomi was about to leave the room, she heard him mumble: "Where in the world did I leave that wire stripper?" Conveniently, she saw it lie underneath a desk that had blueprints on it. She picked it up and gave it to him.

"Here," she said. "You should organise your tools, you know."

Donatello was surprised as he took the wire stripper. "Thank you," he said. "It's even the right one! How did you know that?"

"Well, I used to… hm… I just know a thing or two," said Naomi, forcing a smile.

"In that case… could you tell me which is a closed end spanner?" asked Donatello to test her.

"That's easy," said Naomi. "You're holding one right now in your other hand."

"How much do you know about tools?" asked Donatello.

"Pretty much," said Naomi. "I know a little something about technology, too."

"That's great," said Donatello. "Maybe you _can_ help me."

Both of them didn't leave Donatello's working place for hours. Naomi was fascinated that Donatello knew have to make this kind of gadgets.

When it was evening, Leonardo came in and said: "You guys coming for dinner?"

"Yeah," said both Donatello and Naomi in a not-interested tone.

"Man, you've been at it all day," said Leonardo. "Take a break."

"Well, I guess we could call it a day," said Donatello. "We lack some wires and screws, anyway."

"I can get you some tomorrow," said Naomi. "I know just the place to find all kinds of tools and stuff."

"You mean, outside?" asked Leonardo. "In New York City? On your own?"

"I've done that millions of times before," said Naomi. "Besides, I can avoid dark alleys."

"I dunno," said Donatello. "How can we make sure you…"

"I what?" asked Naomi. "Won't take off and never come back? Is that it?" Donatello didn't answer. Naomi shook her head. "Unbelievable," she sighed. "You expect me to trust you when you don't trust me?"

"Hmm… She does have a point, you know," said Donatello.

"Alright," said Leonardo. "But do you understand how important it is that you keep our existence a secret?"

"Of course I do," said Naomi. "Don't worry."

"Do you even have money?" asked Donatello.

"Yeah," said Naomi. "I saved up all my allowance so I'd be ok living on my own."

"But weren't those thugs trying to mug you?" asked Leonardo. "Where did you keep the money then?"

"Umm… I'm not gonna tell you that," said Naomi.

_[__**Author's note**__: I'll leave it to your imagination in order to prevent this from becoming a plot hole ^____^]_

"… Okay," said Leonardo. "Well then, you can go… after we've had some pizza!"

When the pizzas were served, Naomi was surprised. They were actually _normal_ pizzas!

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**I know this one is pretty short, but I'm running out of inspiration! T_T I already know how it's gonna end, but I still need to think of stuff to happen in the meantime. So I can't tell you when the next chapter will appear, but I'll do my best. Thank you very much for reading and please let me know what you think of this story :)**


	8. Settling In

She left the techno store and looked around.

_Which one was it again?_

Looking for the right place to enter the sewers, Naomi did, however, find a clothing shop. She decided to buy herself some pyjamas. She didn't like the idea of sleeping in the same clothes she was wearing every day.

Finally, she found it. She looked around to see if anyone was looking, then she entered the sewers.

"Naomi's getting pretty late," said Donatello. "Maybe something happened to her."

"Relax," said Raphael. "I'm sure she'll come back real soon."

"How do you know?" asked Donatello.

"'Cause I wish for her _not_ to," answered Raphael. "And as you guys all know, when I wish for something, exactly the opposite happens."

"Why are you worrying so much, Donatello?" asked Leonardo. "So she's a few minutes late, it'll be OK."

"Yeah," said Michelangelo, "you sound like some kind of parent. Y'know, like the ones on TV."

"Yeah, it's not like you at all," said Leonardo.

"Well," said Donatello, "I do somehow feel kind of… responsible… you know? Like a guardian or something…"

"Or a daddy!" laughed Michelangelo.

"No, no, not a daddy!" said Donatello.

"I'm back!" said a very familiar voice. Donatello stood up and ran towards Naomi.

"Are you OK?" he asked.

"Huh? Sure, I'm fine," said Naomi in surprise. "Why?"

Donatello sighed.

"Look what I got," said Naomi. "Wires, micro chips, screws…"

"Ah, that's great," said Donatello. "Thanks!"

"No problem," said Naomi.

"What's in the other bag?" asked Leonardo.

"Oh, I bought myself some pyjamas," said Naomi. "I wasn't very comfy last night."

"Oh, I almost forgot," said Splinter. "Feel free to use our bathroom, if you'd like. You haven't been able to shower for a few days, have you?"

"N-no, not really," said Naomi. "I didn't know there was a bathroom here. All I knew was there is a toilet, but…"

"Well, like master Splinter said, feel free to use it," said Raphael. "You _are_ getting pretty smelly."

"Say _what_?!" said Naomi.

"OK, OK, no fighting, please!" said Leonardo, coming in-between.

Naomi sighed and said: "As much as I hate baths, I guess living in the sewers for three days hasn't really done my clothes much good."

"I will wash them for you, so that they will be clean and good to wear by the time you wake up tomorrow morning," said Splinter.

"Thank you," said Naomi.

When she was done showering and came out of the bathroom, she felt a little embarrassed about entering the Turtles' living room in her PJs. She hesitated and looked into the living room. The five of them were watching a movie. Suddenly, the four Turtles started to laugh out loud and an amused smile appeared on Splinter's face.

The living room was very small. The only chair in it was taken by Raphael, the sofa was overcrowded by the other three and Splinter was sitting on the floor.

A broken smile appeared on Naomi's face. They looked like one big happy family.

_I guess… there's no room for me_, she thought. But just when she turned around to get out, a pair of big green hands took her shoulders and lifted her up. Before she had the chance to even react to this, she found herself on Donatello's lap.

"I think this movie is suited for you, too," he said. "You like comedies?"

"Umm… yeah, I do," said Naomi. She blushed slightly. This also brought back memories. Even though this felt different. Instead of leaning back against a human, she was leaning against a shell. But still, he was surprisingly warm. Weren't turtles reptiles, and therefore cold-blooded? Maybe it was because they were mutated with human genes.

_Who cares_, she thought. She was able to stay awake and watch the movie for a while, but before it ended, she had already fallen asleep.

The next morning, she woke up finding herself on the sofa. Her clothes were on the chair, clean and tidy. After changing clothes, she looked for the others in the kitchen. And yes, everyone was having breakfast, except for one.

"Morning," said Naomi.

"Morning," said everyone at the same time.

Naomi sat down. _Not pizza again_, she thought.

"Umm… do you ever eat anything other than pizza?" she asked.

"Nope," said Michelangelo. "But hey, there're all kinds of pizzas, so why eat anything else?"

"To be honest, I don't think I can eat pizza for breakfast, lunch _and_ supper," said Naomi.

"Perhaps you would like to try some onigiri," said Splinter, offering her a rice ball.

"What's onigiri?" asked Naomi.

"It is a rice ball with mostly salmon or sauce in it," said Splinter. "I, for one, am very fond of salmon."

"Rice ball, huh?" said Naomi. She took one and took a bite out of it. The Turtles looked at her in disgust.

"She's seriously eating it!" said Raphael.

"What? It's pretty good," said Naomi. The Turtles gazed at her with their mouths wide open.

"I am glad you like it," said Splinter. "And you are welcome to have as many as you want."

"I think one will do," said Naomi. "You guys all have kinda heavy breakfasts."

"Well, it _is_ the most important meal of the day," said Michelangelo.

"True," said Naomi. She silently continued eating the onigiri while the Turtles were laughing and talking about how disgusting sushi is.

After a while, Leonardo noticed that Naomi was spacing out, clearly lost in thoughts. While Raphael and Michelangelo kept talking, he leaned more towards her and said softly: "He's in the 'lab'."

"Hm?" asked Naomi, slowly waking up from her thoughts. "Who is?"

"Donatello, of course," said Leonardo.

"Oh… OK," said Naomi. Leonardo hesitated, but then asked: "Before you go there, can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Umm… sure," said Naomi. She didn't really know what to expect. Was she in trouble?

As they left the kitchen, Splinter stared after them.

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**Yup, finally, new chapters. Four of them! Why so many, you ask? (everyone: no, not really)**

**Imagine the most pathetic looking college student, sitting in a lounge chair, wearing an ugly robe, wrapped in a blanket, laptop on her lap, a pile of used tissues the size of Mount Everest next to the chair, messy hair and last but not least... glasses. Then you're probably imagining either me or any other college student with a cold. Because we are all too lazy to clean up this kind of mess (gross, I know).**

**So basically, I ran out of things to do, so I had enough time to come up with more chapters ^^**

**Whew... now that that's off my chest (*cough cough*), please enjoy the next chapters =D**


	9. Facing Facts and Feelings

"Listen," said Leonardo when he and Naomi were alone in the living room. "You've been with us for four days now."

Naomi sat down on the chair. She was wondering what this was all about. Was she in trouble? Or did she do something wrong without even noticing? Was it bad for her to say she didn't want to eat pizza every day? Or maybe…

_Are they gonna kick me out?_ she thought. Could it be that they had made a decision of sending her back to the orphanage when she wasn't around yesterday?

"And I can see some of us are growing… sort of… attached to you," said Leonardo, not sure if he was even using the right words. "That is… including myself. Don't get me wrong about this… It's just… we've never had to take care of someone before and it's kinda weird. This is new for us."

_They're gonna kick me out_, thought Naomi, hoping she was wrong.

"I see I'm making you nervous, so I'll just get straight to the point," said Leonardo.

"Are you gonna kick me out?" asked Naomi, holding back her tears.

"What?" asked Leonardo. "N-no, we're not kicking you out… But we…" He sighed and sat down next to her, on the sofa, and looked straight into her eyes with a serious look on his face. "We did talk about it yesterday," he said. "And we… talked about something else. Something I wanna talk to you about."

"So… I can stay?" asked Naomi to clear things up.

But Leonardo took just a little too much time before answering: "For the time being, yes."

Naomi felt a little relieved, but why was he still looking so serious, she wondered?

"Now listen," said Leonardo again. "I couldn't help but notice… You like Donatello a lot, don't you?"

"Well, yeah," said Naomi. "I like all of you – 'xcept for Raphael…"

"No, I mean… I think you really, really _like_ Donatello," said Leonardo.

"Well, we do have a lot in common," said Naomi.

Leonardo stared at her in surprise. "… So you know?" he asked.

"Know what? I don't get what you're saying," said Naomi, now very confused.

"You know what? I'll just ask this straight away," said Leonardo. "Are you in love with Donatello?"

"W-what?!" asked Naomi. She stood up and took some slow steps back. She stared at Leonardo in complete surprise and confusion. "You… you think I'm in love with him?" she asked.

'_In love'?_

"I don't know, that why I'm asking you," said Leonardo. "Are you or not?"

'_In love'?! With Donatello?!_

"What the matter?" asked Leonardo. "It's a simple question, right? I promise I won't get mad, and neither will any of us. So if you are, you can tell me."

"I'm only 9," said Naomi. "I'm a kid, I don't know anything about love! So how could I possibly…"

"You're not like other kids," said Leonardo. "As far as I know, kids think of nothing but playing with friends and toys, having a good time. You don't seem interested in any of that. Am I right?"

"Well, yeah…"

"And on top of that, you're helping out our 'professor' here with some kind of thing that might revolutionise the world or something. You're too smart for someone your age. All I'm saying is that it's possible."

Love? Yes. All of them. _In_ love? Donatello? She didn't know. Was she?

"Anyway," said Leonardo, "my point is: if you are… you know… then I'll have to remind you that you're a child, a human child, and we are teenage Turtles. Besides, your stay here is not permanent. I hope you realize that. You'll be going somewhere else soon, and the best you can do when that time comes, is to forget about us. I know you probably can't, but you'll have to try and pretend we don't exist."

Naomi looked down. She hadn't thought about what would happen from the day she would leave yet. She embraced herself, trying to ban the thought of going away.

"I'm not saying this to upset you," said Leonardo. "I'm just reminding you. We can't keep you here forever. We already decided that when we took you in."

Naomi didn't say anything back. She couldn't. He was right. Without looking at him, she made her way to the exit.

"Where're you going?" asked Leonardo. But all he could hear was a hiccup before Naomi ran away. Leonardo wanted to chase her, but Splinter stopped him.

"No, Leonardo," he said. "She will come back. She just needs some time."

Everyone had been listening to their conversation, except for Donatello, who didn't even have a clue.

"I don't know, master Splinter," said Leonardo. "If she's not coming back soon…"

"Then you will have to warn Donatello," said Splinter. "I think that he is the one she needs right now."

"Warn me about what?" asked Donatello, who was just coming in. Everyone looked at him. "What's going on?" he asked.

"Naomi ran away," said Leonardo.

"Why?" asked Donatello. He saw the guilty look on Leonardo's face. "What did you say to her?"

"It just felt like I needed to remind her that she's not staying here forever," said Leonardo. "It just seemed that she thought she was… I didn't mean to upset her."

"I know," said Donatello. "I'll go talk to her."

But where to start looking for her? He had to try. She couldn't be that far. And she wasn't. She was still underground, in one of the side tunnels of the sewers.

"Hey," said Donatello softly, slowly approaching.

Naomi looked up. She was not crying, like he would have expected. But she did have an empty gaze in her eyes.

He sat next to her, but didn't say anything. They were both just staring into space for a long time.

Finally, Naomi was the one who opened the conversation. Although it was not very clear whether she was talking to Donatello or to herself.

"I know it's only been a few days," she said, "but I've already grown to feel like this is where I should be."

Donatello chuckled a little. "In the sewers?" he asked.

Naomi smiled briefly. "It's not the place," she said, "but the people – or… sorta people – you're with."

She finally looked at him.

"You're exactly like Serge," she said.

"Uhh… who?" asked Donatello.

"My brother," said Naomi. "He was always inventing new stuff and toys for me. And he taught me everything I know. He used to bring me to bed and stay with me until I fell asleep. I used to sit on his lap when we were watching TV. I loved him so much. And you're exactly like him. It's like my big brother is back to life again."

"Naomi…" whispered Donatello in disbelief. He was speechless. What do you say at a time like this? He wasn't that good in this sort of thing.

"You're like a big brother to me," said Naomi.

Donatello thought of the past few days. He couldn't deny he felt something inside ever since they had saved her. Responsible, needed… Now that she said it, it totally made sense. It was like he had a younger sister to take care of.

He smiled widely. "Come here," he said. Naomi sat closer. Donatello lifted her up and put her on his lap. "If you'll have me," he said, "I'll be your big brother." He patted her head.

"Really?" asked Naomi. "I mean, _really_ really?"

"Yeah," said Donatello.

Naomi jumped up and hugged him. She hadn't felt this happy in a long time.

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**Feel free to throw up after this. I know it's exaggerated sentimental crap, but hey, _someone_ needs to explain the title of this fic, right? Right?**

**I'm sorry, I'll never do it again (_ _)**

**Please do continue to the next chapters (A) No more exaggerated sentimental stuff, I promise!**


	10. Goodbye, Naomi?

After another week, the Turtles finally allowed Naomi to go outside with them.

"Just stay close to us – no, wait, stay as far from bad guys as you can, make sure you're hidden well, and stay away from any suspicious looking person…"

"I get it, Leonardo. I'll be fine. Can we go now?"

"And most importantly: don't try and be a hero! You can watch from a distance, that's all."

"I know, I know, now let's go already! I wanna see you guys in action!"

"Alright, here we go."

After everyone had climbed out of the sewers, they decided to climb to the roofs for a better view.

"Come one, Naomi," said Donatello. "Climb on my shell and hang on tight."

Naomi did as she was told and climbed on his back… which felt really weird. Donatello took out a rope and bind it around them a few times, so that Naomi couldn't fall off.

The view on top of the roofs was beautiful. It was like they could see all of New York City. Which was a good thing, since it made spotting crime a lot easier. It didn't take long for the Turtles to spot another robbery in a jewellery: one of the daily crimes around here. The Turtles kept their eyes on the escaping thieves as they followed them via the roofs, until the thieves ended up in a small alley. Perfect.

Leonardo, Raphael and Michelangelo made their way down to the three criminals while Donatello brought Naomi to a safe spot on the other side of the alley where she could watch them. She hid behind a trash can and watched as Donatello joined the others.

The three thieves were defenceless against the four ninjas. The Turtles didn't even have to use their weapons.

One of the thieves, probably the leader, tried to punch Raphael in the stomach, which only resulted in a very painful, probably broken hand, while Raphael hadn't moved an inch. He grinned evilly at the pathetic looking leader, who was clearly regretting this action.

"Try again," said Raphael. "Come on, I dare ya."

The man looked scared, but then put all his courage together and tried to kick Raphael in the stomach. Again, it was no use. And now his foot hurt, too.

"Too bad," said Raphael, still an evil smirk on his face. The man could see his smirk, but not much more than that. He trembled in fear.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!!" he screamed in panic.

But he was already knock-out after one single punch in the face.

"Cool…" said Naomi to herself, fascinated by what she saw.

"Hey, you," said a voice behind her. Naomi turned around. A pair of long legs. She looked up and found out it was a policeman. "What are you doing out this late?"

Raphael tied the leader of the thieves up and dragged him to the other two, who were already tied up and knocked out.

"Whew, that was fun," he said. "Can't wait 'till the next ones."

His brothers laughed.

"You coming, Naomi?" asked Donatello, turning to the other side of the alley. But there was no one there. "Naomi?"

"But I'm not a runaway," said Naomi to the policeman. "I was just on my way home…"

"You're not fooling anyone, kid," said the cop. "You're the girl that's been missing for weeks. Besides, you smell like you've been living in the sewers or something."

(Me: Hah, irony.)

"I'm not that girl," said Naomi. "And I was just… playing with… trash cans…"

_Ok, no one would fall for that one_, she thought.

She tried to run away, but the policeman caught her and dragged her into the police car.

"No! No! I don't wanna go back there!" screamed Naomi.

"Naomi?!" said Donatello. He made his way to the place where Naomi was supposed to be, but Leonardo stopped him.

"Donatello," he said. "You can't go out there, you'll blow our cover!"

They saw a police car ride past the end of the alley… and Naomi on the back seat.

"Oh no…" said Leonardo.

"Hey dudes, what's goin' on?" asked Michelangelo.

"They got her…" said Donatello.

Even Raphael was shocked.

"Oh man… major bummer, dudes!" said Michelangelo. "We gotta get her back!"

"How?" asked Leonardo. "We can't just waltz into the police station and kidnap her back."

Donatello punched into the trash can Naomi used to hide. The others were a little startled, since he was always the calm and collected one, but on the other hand, they knew how much that little girl meant to him.

"I'm sorry, Donatello," said Leonardo. "We lost her."

"… It's ok," said Donatello. "I mean… given the fact that her stay with us was not permanent, and the orphanage can provide her more than we ever will, the orphanage would only be a benefit for her."

"Umm, right," said Michelangelo, not understanding a word he just said. "Just wish we could've at least said goodbye."

"… Me too," said Donatello.

"Me three," said Leonardo.

Raphael didn't say anything.

"Well… we can't stay out here all night," said Leonardo. "We've got a mission. We need to protect this city."

Michelangelo and Raphael nodded.

"You coming, Donatello?" asked Leonardo.

After a few seconds of silence, Donatello said: "Yeah, I'm coming."

He couldn't allow himself to cry. He was a ninja, after all.

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**You think it ends here? Heck, no! That's not the big ending I had in mind ;-)**

**Umm, just so you know, next chapter's gonna be all Naomi, but please don't hate me for that...**

**I would once again like to thank everyone who's read it so far, you're making me really happy =)**


	11. The Great Escape

Naomi's return to the orphanage was even worse than she had expected.

"Your running away has only shown us that we need to look after you even more," had one of the caretakers said.

"I was doing just fine out there!" had Naomi said. "I was running away _because_ of you all!"

"Then where have you been?" had the caretaker asked.

"I told you, I can't tell you that!" had Naomi shouted angrily.

She was grounded for as long as the caretakers found necessary – however long that may be. Every 10 minutes, one of the caretakers looked if she was still in her room.

Naomi was bored to death. She was lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling. That was the only thing she was still allowed to do.

Suddenly, the door of her bedroom opened.

"Naomi," said one of the caretakers, "there are visitors downstairs. Wanna come show your face?"

"What's the point?" said Naomi. "No one would ever wanna adopt me."

"Come on," said the caretaker. "You never know what happens."

Naomi grunted. "Fine," she said.

But as she expected, the visiting couple only had eyes for the littlest ones. Apparently, one of them had brought their father, since there was an old man whom they kept asking his opinion. The old man, however, looked around and talked to some other children of different ages.

Naomi didn't even care about them anymore. But just when she was about to leave the room, the old man talked to her.

"Hey, wait," he said. "Where're you going?"

"To my room," said Naomi without looking back. "I'm clearly wasting my time here."

"And what kind of important business could you possibly have upstairs?" asked the man. "Come on, I wanna ask you something."

Naomi stopped and turned to him. "You just did," she said.

The old man chuckled. "I did, didn't I?" he laughed. Naomi gave him a strange look. She wasn't even trying to be funny.

"But hey, listen, I need your advice," said the old man. "Come here for a sec."

Naomi didn't know why she was even listening to him.

"Look," he said, pointing at the young couple. "These two friends of mine would like to adopt. It's just that they don't have a clue about anyone's personality. And if you ask me, neither do these caretakers here."

"Tell me about it," said Naomi. The man laughed again.

"So what I wanted to ask," said the man, "is how well you know the children here."

"Pretty well," said Naomi. "Are you the father of one of those people?"

"No, they're close friends of mine," said the old man. "I've known both of them since they were about your age. Never expected they'd end up together, though."

"Let me guess," said Naomi. "They've been trying to have a baby for years, but they can't get pregnant, her body's too weak to bear a child, and now they wanna adopt."

"That's right," said the man, very surprised. "You're a smart one, aren't you?"

"I've seen couples come and go," said Naomi. "And they're going to adopt for the first time, right? Then it's better to adopt a calm, not to noisy kid, but still fun to play with. The oldest they've looked at until now is 2 years old, so that would leave us to… Trevor over there, Alisa next to him, both almost 2 years old, Jimmy, 8 months, Max or Kyra, both about 6 months old. They're quiet, playful and know what they want."

The old man looked at her in surprise. She knew it all!

"What's your name, kid?" he asked.

"Naomi," answered Naomi.

"Thanks, Naomi," said the old man. "I'll talk to them about it."

"You do that," said Naomi. "What's your name?"

"Who, me? I'm Harry Peterson," said the old man. "But you can just call me Grandpa."

"Umm… ok," said Naomi. "Nice to meet you, Grandpa."

"Nice to meet you too, Naomi," said Harry. "I'll keep those names in mind and talk to them about it."

He gave a little wave and joined the young couple.

Naomi stared after him for a while. Then she looked at the front door. It was wide open and a lot of children were coming in and going out. They wouldn't even notice her. The caretakers were too busy with the visitors, anyway.

She took the opportunity and escaped the orphanage again. But unfortunately, two caretakers had seen her sneak out and chased after her.

"Naomi! Come back!" shouted one of them. "You're in so much trouble already! You'll only make things worse for yourself!"

"Only if you catch me!" shouted Naomi back. "Yeah, extremely convincing, guys!"

But they were starting to catch up with her. She had to find a place to hide. Hopefully, she would have more success than when she tried to escape from the Turtles when she first met them.

And then she got an idea.

The alleys of New York were not as dark as they were at night, but still a fine way to get rid of those two. After a few blocks, she was finally far enough from them to find a place to hide.

_Oh no…_

But not here. This was a dead end.

She stopped and looked around, desperately trying to find something to hide in. She found the only option left for her. A big, smelly trash can. She didn't have time to look for something else, as she heard two pairs of feet heading towards her in a fast pace.

The caretakers looked into the alley. They were not sure if she had run into this one. No, that couldn't be. This was a dead end.

"Come on, I bet she ran into the next one," said one of them. The other followed him.

Naomi waited until she could no longer hear their footsteps. Then she quickly pushed the lid of the trash can away and gasped for air.

"Ahw, yuck!" she said to herself. "Compared to this, even the sewers smell like flowers!"

Now to find a way to the sewers.

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**Once again, please forgive me for not putting in any of the Turtles in this one (_ _)**

**So that's it for today. I've already started on chapter 12 (good God, I'm already at 12?!), so that won't take long, either.**

**I'd like to thank you all once again for reading and for your patience (it took me forever to finally think of something). I already got so many e-mails of this site, saying another person had added this story to their favorites, Story Alerts, and also a lot of reviews. Not only on this one, but also my other two fanfics: "Why Kakashi Wears A Mask" (one-shot) and "After the Elf Died" (still ongoing). Thank you very, very much! =D**


	12. Reunion?

_Now let me see…__ I do remember this place… But where to go? Oh, wish I'd paid more attention to the surroundings here…_

"Cowabunga!!" heard Naomi a very familiar voice say. And she was right. On his skateboard, Michelangelo came from around the corner, headed to Naomi.

But he didn't see it was her.

"Human…" he gasped before he fell off his skateboard. He stood up, keeping one hand in front of his face, so that Naomi couldn't see it.

"Uhh… uhh… s-sorry, I must've gone the wrong way and…" he said before trying to run away. He tripped over his skateboard. He panicked. This human might have seen too much.

"Michelangelo," said Naomi. "Calm down! It's me!"

Michelangelo looked up.

"Naomi?" he asked. He stood up. "Hehey, come here, you!" he said happily, strongly embracing her. "I thought you were…"

"I was," said Naomi. "But I can't stand that place anymore… You're crushing all of my bones here, Michelangelo."

"Oh, sorry," said Michelangelo. He let go of her. "C'mon, let's go home!"

He carried her on his shoulders as he skated back to the Turtle's house.

"Hey everyone, look what I found," he said when they came in.

"Another pair of shoes?" asked Raphael without looking away form the TV. "Honestly, how do those things even get down here?"

"No, look," said Michelangelo.

Leonardo and Raphael looked his way.

"Naomi?!" they asked at the same time. Everyone looked at Raphael.

"What? I don't know why she's here," he said.

"What are you doing here, Naomi?" asked Leonardo.

"I ran away the first time because I didn't wanna to be there," said Naomi. "I ran away this time because I… well… like I said, I don't wanna be there."

"So now you think you can just come live with us again?" asked Raphael.

"Well, I… I wanted to see you again," said Naomi.

"And leave the job to us of finding you a home," said Raphael.

"Glad to see you again, too," said Naomi sarcastically.

"Ok," said Leonardo quickly to come in-between. "Listen, Naomi, we're all happy to see you again, but you should've thought this through. Think of it: you'll have a much better future when you get adopted. You'll have everything you need: a real house, parents, education, opportunities…"

"No one wants to adopt me," said Naomi. "No one ever will."

"Naomi…" sighed Leonardo.

Michelangelo had gone to get Donatello and Splinter. They entered the living room.

"Naomi?" asked Donatello. He saw her.

"Donatello!" said Naomi in joy. She embraced him.

Donatello was not sure whether he was happy or confused. He did not exactly return the hug, but did loosely put his arms around her.

"You… you escaped again?" he asked.

"I wanted to see you," said Naomi. "I missed you."

Donatello took her shoulders and gently pushed her away from him. Then he kneeled down to her level.

"You have to get back," he said.

Naomi's smile disappeared and her face instantly turned pale.

"W-what?" she asked.

"You… you can't stay here," he said.

"I… I don't understand," said Naomi, taking a few steps back. "I thought you'd be happy to see me."

"I am," said Donatello. "But… you knew you couldn't stay here forever, right? It's already been too long and… I'm gonna bring you back there."

"No, not back there!" said Naomi, eyes widened. "They'll never let me see daylight again! And I can't stand any more of stupid therapy!"

"It's the best option for you to have a better future," said Donatello. "Come on, I'll take you…"

"No!" yelled Naomi. She ran out.

"Oh, not again," mumbled Raphael.

"I was afraid something like this would happen," sighed Splinter.

"What should I do, master?" asked Donatello.

"You must go after her and bring her back here," answered Splinter. "I have an idea that might be the best for all of us. You must go alone, Donatello, but be careful not to let anybody take any notice of you. As for the rest of you, you must stay here. I will share my plan with you."

Donatello took off. Naomi wasn't in her favourite hiding places, so she must have gone up to the surface. Great.

Donatello climbed up to an abandoned street and climbed onto the roofs. He had to be extra careful not to be seen, since it was still the middle of the day. She couldn't be far. He looked all around the block, but so signs of Naomi. He looked into the alley they last saw her before they took her away.

"Naomi?" he called. But no response. "Naomi?" No one here.

Suddenly, a piece of paper was blown right into his face. Frustrated as he already was, he snatched it out of the way. But then he caught a glimpse of what was on it.

Naomi's face.

"_**MISSING**_

_Naomi, 9 years old. __Green-blue eyes, chestnut brown hair, shoulder length. Last time seen, she wore a black-white striped t-shirt, light jeans, sport shoes and a white scarf._

_If you have seen this girl, please inform us at the Maria Orphanage._

_Our address:_

_(…)"_

This had to be one of the posters hung up when Naomi ran away the first time.

"Maria Orphanage…" mumbled Donatello to himself.

He decided to go there and see what kind of place it was. Could it really be as bad as Naomi said it was?

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**Yes, this chapter's a little shorter, but I'm uploading the next one right after this one, so it's not that bad, is it?**

**I got a lot of new reviews and Story Alerters.... something.... Anyway, I'm really glad people like it. You guys (and girls, of course ^^) are the inspiration I need for new chapters ^^ Thank you all very, very much! 3**


	13. A Place to Be

Donatello hid in the bushes leaning against the side of the building. It was a perfect hiding place, since no one ever came there and his green shell and skin colour were the perfect camouflage. He hid underneath an open window and occasionally took a quick peek inside. There were a lot of children, all different ages, and a very happy looking young couple and an old man.

"You feel it too, right?" asked the woman to her husband. "I can feel such a strong connection with Jimmy. I really think he's the one!"

"He's perfect," said her husband.

"I already love him," said the woman.

"Ma'am," said the man to the housekeeper, "we'd like to come back tomorrow."

"Of course, sir," said the housekeeper.

And while the young couple and the old man moved to the foyer, Donatello could still hear the woman talking about how much she loved that baby and she was positive that this was the right child for them.

About half an hour later, they were outside.

"I sure hope they find that Naomi girl soon," said the woman. "I want to thank her."

"Were you serious about what you said back there, Harry?" asked her husband to the old man.

"Yes, I'm seriously considering," answered Harry. "I've seen that girl quite a few times and I've been asking around in this building. How do you think I came up with this address? And she's a very interesting young lady. If I had a daughter, she'd probably been just like that. But as you know, it's already too late for me to have children of my own. But hey, a granddaughter in the house…"

"But you hardly know each other," said the woman.

"And you hardly know Jimmy," answered Harry. "But it's just the same as you two: I immediately felt a connection between that girl and myself. I felt it ever since I first saw her on the playgrounds here."

"I think it's crazy that you want to adopt her," said the younger man. "But hey, if having a granddaughter makes you happy, and if it makes Naomi happy, then go right ahead."

"I'll talk to her about it," said Harry.

Donatello heard everything. He couldn't believe it. He was right. There _was_ someone out there who wanted to adopt Naomi. He knew it.

But… this also meant that they really had to say goodbye. He would no longer have a little sister and she would lose another brother. But this was best for her.

He had heard enough. He continued his search for Naomi.

But after a few hours, still no success. Donatello was starting to get worried.

_If something's happened to her, I'll never forgive myself_, he thought. But he refused to give up.

After another few hours, it was midnight. He had searched everywhere possible. Just where could she be?

Suddenly, he heard something just a little further away.

_Someone's up here?_

He went to check it out. And what he found…

_No way…_

All this time, Naomi was on the roof of the apartment building of the first street. But how come he didn't see her there right away? He didn't approach her right away. He didn't want to scare her. She was sounding kind of sad. She was shaking. She must be freezing up here.

"If you were still here, you'd wake me up and say: happy birthday!" she said to a picture she was holding. "I guess… from now on, I'll never hear that from anyone again."

"Happy birthday, Naomi," said Donatello. Naomi was a little startled, but the voice was familiar. She looked behind her and there he was. But was she happy to see him? In her eyes, for a second, yes, but then she turned back.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Looking for you, of course," answered Donatello. "I've been looking for you all day."

"I was hiding," said Naomi. "I waited until I was sure you were gone and then I got up here."

Donatello looked over the edge of the roof.

"… Wow," he said. "How on earth did you climb all the way up here?"

"What?" asked Naomi. "I took the elevator and the staircases to the roof."

"Huh? Oh, right, of course," said Donatello, pretty ashamed of his stupid assumption.

Naomi looked at him. "Wait, you really thought I'd…"

"No, no, of course not," lied Donatello. "Just… trying to be funny."

Naomi let out a sarcastic: "Ha." She looked at the picture again.

"Is that your family?" asked Donatello.

"It _was_," said Naomi. "And since when do _you_ care?"

"I care," said Donatello calmly. "I care a lot about you." He sat down behind her and looked at the picture over her head.

"I know," said Naomi. "I just don't wanna say goodbye."

"Neither do I," said Donatello. He hesitated. But he had to tell her. "Listen," he said. "I went to the orphanage and… I heard something. Something you'll probably find very interesting."

Naomi leaned back, her head against his chest. "What?" she asked.

"There was this old guy… umm… Harry…?" said Donatello.

"Oh yeah… Grandpa," said Naomi. "What about him?"

"He likes you a lot," explained Donatello. "He said that if he had a daughter, she'd probably be like you. And… he's seriously thinking about… adopting you as his granddaughter."

Naomi sat straight up and turned around to look straight into his eyes.

"For… for real?" she asked. "But I only talked to him for like 5 minutes…"

"He knows you longer than that," said Donatello. "I think you should talk to him. He wants to talk to you, that's for sure."

Naomi didn't know what to think. Should she be happy, confused, scared of what might be a whole new turn in her life.

"You're freezing," said Donatello. "I'll take you back to our house. Hop on and hang on tight."

Naomi was out of words to say. So she didn't say anything along the way back to the sewers.

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**Yes, this fanfic is coming to and end. Which I find a pity, actually, because I got dragged into this after a terrible writer's block. Plus, I'm not that good with goodbyes, even when it comes to finishing a long fanfic T_T *sob* *sob***

**I think it'll be another 2 or 3 chapters. I'll miss writing this. But on the other hand, maybe I'll find more inspiration for my other fanfic: "After the Elf Died". I sure hope so.**

**Anyway, thanks again for reading this story, I really appreciate it 3 And I would have never thought it'd become such a hit, yay! ^^**

**Until next chapter!**


	14. A Not So Happy Birthday

When they got home, everyone was silent. The atmosphere was gloomy, and not because of the smell of the dirty water that was running beside them.

Donatello put Naomi down from his shell and looked around.

"What's happened?" he asked.

"Nothin'," sighed Michelangelo.

"Then what's going on? Why are you guys looking so down?" asked Donatello.

"Welcome back, my son," said Splinter, entering the living room. "I have something very important to tell you. Please come with me."

"Something I need to hear, too?" asked Naomi.

"No, my child," said Splinter. "I need to talk to Donatello in private. Follow me, my son."

Donatello followed his master out of the living room. When he passed Leonardo, he secretly pointed at Naomi and said without making any sound: "Birthday…" Leonardo's eyes widened a little, then he nodded. He stood up and sat next to Naomi.

"You know, you look somewhat different," he said. Naomi, Michelangelo and Raphael looked at him. "Somewhat… older."

"Well, today's my birthday…" said Naomi. A faint smile and a slight blush appeared on her face.

"Birthday?" asked Michelangelo. "Why didn't ya say so right away? Let's party, dudes! Cowabunga!"

"Michelangelo…" whispered Leonardo.

"Huh? Oh… right," said Michelangelo, followed by a disappointed sigh.

"Why are you guys so sad?" asked Naomi.

"'Sad'…" repeated Leonardo. "You're a kid, after all." He patted her head roughly and messed up her hair.

"Hey! Cut it out!" laughed Naomi.

Donatello could hear her laugh while he was sitting down in the next room, his master in front of him.

"Donatello," started Splinter. "As all of us know, Naomi has a… stronger bond with you than she has with your brothers. I feared that she would get too attached to you." He paused for a few seconds. "Things have become as I had feared. Not only you, but also your brothers and myself, to be honest, have grown attached to her as well. But you know as well as I do that this is not the place for her to be."

"Yes, Sensei," said Donatello. "But I think I have found the place that _is _right for her."

"Then you know what you should do," said Splinter.

"But what if she doesn't want to go?" asked Donatello. "I mean, what if she were to come back?"

"Do not worry," said Splinter. "I have proposed my idea to your brothers, and after a long discussion, they have agreed to it. But I will not act unless you agree too, Donatello."

"What is it, master?" asked Donatello.

"My plan is to erase everything about us from Naomi's memory," explained Splinter. "I will use an old form of hypnosis that will allow me to make her forget about us for good."

"For good?" repeated Donatello. "So… if you do that… we can never talk to her anymore?"

"That would be the best for everyone," said Splinter. "If you do agree with this and I erase her memory, you will have to forget about her, too."

"… I don't know if I can, master," said Donatello.

"Be strong, Donatello," said Splinter. He put a comforting hand on Donatello's shoulder. "You are wise enough to know you will do the right thing."

Donatello hesitated.

_I guess… it _would_ be better for Naomi… and for us._

He nodded. "It's for her own good… and ours," he said.

"A wise decision, my son," said Splinter.

"I'll go tell her," said Donatello. His master nodded.

They went back to the living room. They found both Naomi and Michelangelo had fallen asleep. Raphael was watching TV and Leonardo looked over Naomi. He looked up when his master and his brother entered the living room.

"So?" he asked. "What're we gonna do?"

Donatello kneeled next to Naomi and laid his hand on her head. Naomi woke up.

"I was just… keeping my eyes closed," she mumbled, eyes still closed. "I wasn't sleeping."

She opened her eyes and the first thing she saw was the sad look on Donatello's face.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

Donatello gently explained Splinter's idea to her, so that she would understand what was going to happen and she could accept it. But as he had already expected, she didn't just accept this.

"I don't wanna forget about you!" she said.

"Neither do we want to forget about you, but it's for the best," said Donatello. "This way, you can lead a normal life and you can get anything you need."

"I need _you_," said Naomi.

Donatello shook his head. "You'll manage without me. Without any of us."

"And you're OK with this?" asked Naomi. "Just like that?"

"No, not just like that," said Donatello calmly. "This is hard for me, too."

Naomi looked at her feet.

"You may not know me anymore after this," said Donatello. "But you'll always be our little sister."

After a long silence, Naomi looked up.

"Is this gonna hurt?" she asked.

"Of course not," said Splinter. "All you have to do is to be completely relaxed."

"… OK," said Naomi.

"So… you're gonna do it?" asked Leonardo.

"Yes," said Naomi.

"Good," said Splinter. "That leaves only one thing to do before we start. And that is to say goodbye."

"R-right," said Naomi. She looked at Donatello, who was clearly having trouble with this, too. Both of them didn't know what to say. Naomi decided to say goodbye to the others first. She stood up and looked at Leonardo. She hugged him and said: "Thanks for everything."

"No problem," said Leonardo. "It's been great knowing you. You'll be alright."

"Thanks," said Naomi.

Michelangelo, in the meantime awoken from his sleep, had tears in his eyes. He was trying to hold them back.

"Sorry we didn't have a chance to throw ya a birthday party," he said.

"That's OK," said Naomi. "Hey, are you crying?"

"No," said Michelangelo. "It's just my… contacts…"

Raphael chuckled. "You don't have any— oof!" Michelangelo elbowed him in the chest. Then he hugged Naomi so tightly that she felt like all air she had ever breathed was being squished out.

"Can't… breathe…" she managed to bring out, her face turning slightly blue. Michelangelo let go of her.

"Oh, sorry," he said.

"No problem," said Naomi, gasping for air. "I'll miss you, too."

Then she looked at Raphael, whom she had only been fighting with over the past few weeks.

"Goodbye," she said quickly.

"Good riddance," mumbled Raphael, arms crossed.

"What?!" yelled Naomi in a very high voice. The four Turtles were glad they didn't have ears.

"You heard me," said Raphael.

"Well I'm glad I won't have to see _you_ anymore! You're just a big bundle of sarcasm and you're not even funny!"

"Take that back, you brat!"

"Give me one good reason why I should!"

"How about a foot on your—"

In just a flash, Naomi gave him a hug. Raphael froze, slightly confused.

"I'm gonna miss you," said Naomi. "It's been great arguing with you."

Raphael's anger disappeared instantly. Suddenly, he felt a little sad.

"I… I'll… miss you too," he said with a blush on his cheeks.

"Wow!" said Michelangelo, swinging his arm onto Raphael's shoulders. "Raphael's blushing, guys! Mondo freaky!"

"No I'm not!" said Raphael. "Cut it out. And you," he said to Naomi, "you should get on with it. It's way past your bedtime, kid."

Naomi laughed. "We'll just leave it like this before you start to cry," she said teasingly. And before Raphael had a chance to say anything back, she turned around to face Donatello again. This was the hardest part. She still didn't know what to say. And neither did Donatello.

"Umm… so… I guess this is it," he said.

"Yeah," said Naomi softly. "I guess I'll miss you the most."

_Actually, you won't even know I exist_, thought Donatello, but he didn't want to spoil the moment, so he didn't say it out loud.

"I'll probably miss you even more," he said. "You were a great sister."

"You were a great brother," said Naomi. She hugged him and immediately broke into tears.

"Hey, hey, it's ok," said Donatello in a soothing voice. "Even though you won't remember me after this… you'll always be our little sister."

"Y-yeah," sobbed Naomi. She wiped her tears away, but new ones kept pouring out. "Good… goodbye."

Donatello patted her head and gave a little kiss on her forehead.

"Goodbye," he said. He forced a smile. "May only good things happen to you from now on."

Naomi gave him a kiss on the cheek. "You too," she said.

She turned around to Splinter and said: "I'm… ready."

"Very well," said Splinter. He stood in front of her and laid his hand on her head. "I am honoured to have met such a good and intelligent young lady."

"Thanks for everything, Splinter," said Naomi.

Splinter's hand lit up. He closed his eyes and focussed. He searched for the memories of the Turtles and himself. He needed to find them all and erase them from Naomi's mind.

Naomi was shaking. Donatello took her hand, trying to keep her calm. Leonardo took her other hand. Michelangelo and even Raphael both laid their hands on her shoulders.

"It's ok, it's ok," whispered Donatello like a mantra.

"I'm dizzy…" said Naomi, tears still flowing from her eyes.

"We'll catch you if you fall," said Leonardo.

"I'm scared… Donatello, I'm scared," said Naomi. "I'm scared!"

And then it was over. Darkness surrounded her quickly. The last thing she heard, was an unfamiliar voice saying: "Gotcha."

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**And that concludes the second to final chapter of this fanfic. I'm almost done with the last one, so I'll upload that one today, too. Just thinking of an acceptable ending (I'm so bad at endings!!! T_T) . **

**BUT!!! I've already started writing on the first chapter of the sequel. But I think it's going to have to be a T-rated story, since I'm planning to put more violence in it (yay, violence!!). I hope you will like that one, too. I'll give you the title in the next chapter of this one, since I umm... haven't thought of a title yet (A).**

**Anyways, thanks for reading, I really appreciate that people like my stories! ^^ And hopefully, see you in the next fanfic. Please have a _little_ more patience for the final chapter. It'll be up any minute ;) Bye bye!**


	15. The Final Goodbye

**_Final chapter!!_**

It was almost 2 a.m.. The orphanage was quiet and the inside was pitch black.

Donatello sneaked through the hallways, looking for a door with the name "Naomi" on it. The little girl in his arms looked very peaceful. Maybe she was dreaming.

_Found it!_

As quiet as he could, he gently opened the door while letting the sleeping girl partially rest on his knee in order to use his hand. This room was pitch black, too. He laid Naomi on the bed, closed the door and switched the lights on. He took off her shoes and tugged her in.

He stared at her for a long time before finally making his way back to the door of the bedroom. He kept looking at her while slowly walking away. Then he stepped on something, he didn't know what, and tripped over it.

BANG!

Naomi shot up, confusedly looking around. No one was there.

Donatello, the ninja that he was, had quickly moved and hidden between several toys in a corner.

"A-anyone there?" she asked carefully. Why were the lights switched on?

She stood up to switch them off, but then she saw a slight movement in the corner next to the door.

"Hello?" she asked. She didn't know why, but curiosity took over and she slowly walked towards her toys.

_This is not good_, thought Donatello. He recalled when she first saw him. She had panicked, screamed. _That can't happen again. Not here. Please, just go back…_

Naomi reached her hand toward the pile of toys and slowly removed some of them.

_Gotta get out of here_, thought Donatello. _Maybe if I run as fast as I can, she won't see me… or at least, see what I am._

He tried to stand up and take off, but… he was stuck! The edge of his shell got caught up between a toy truck.

_She plays with toy trucks?!_

And then it was too late. Naomi saw him after removing a big teddy bear. Her eyes met his, widened and shocked from what she saw. She froze.

_No, don't scream, _please_ don't scream…!_

"Are… are you…" said Naomi, not quite sure if this was a dream.

_Don't scream, don't scream, don't scream!_ Donatello gave her a begging look.

Naomi was wriggling her shirt a little.

"Are you ok?" she asked.

_Huh?_

He didn't see that coming.

_She's not scared?_

"You're stuck, right?" asked Naomi. "If you promise you won't attack me, I'll help you."

Donatello stared at her, then nodded.

_What's going on? How come she's not scared of me?_

Naomi slowly got on her knees, not taking her eyes off him.

"I-I'm just gonna…" she said while slowly reaching for the truck. "This thing's broken, so it's pretty easy to get stuck on the…" She pulled back when Donatello moved his arm so that she could reach for the part of his shell that was stuck.

_Ok, no sudden movements._

"S-sorry," said Naomi, seeing what the Turtle was trying to do. She sat a little closer and after about a minute, Donatello was freed.

"There," said Naomi. She looked into his eyes. "Can you talk?"

"Umm…"

"You can! I knew it! This is so cool! What's your name?"

Donatello stood up, making Naomi realize how much taller he was than she was. Not to mention how muscular he was.

_What should I do?_ thought Donatello. _She's seen me!_

"Umm… if it makes you feel any better," said Naomi hesitantly, "I won't tell anyone. I swear."

Donatello looked at her. _That's not the problem_, he thought. _You shouldn't have seen me in the first place._

"Please say something," said Naomi. "I'm the only one talking, 's kind of awkward…"

And after a long silence, Donatello finally spoke.

"Umm… I… I didn't come here to hurt you or something…"

"I know," said Naomi.

"… You do?" asked Donatello in surprise.

"Yeah… I think I do," said Naomi. "I don't know who or what you are… well, you're a talking turtle… but… I dunno. I think I can trust you."

_This girl keeps surprising me_, thought Donatello.

"Have you… seen me before?" he asked.

"No," said Naomi. "I don't think so."

"You're not scared, then?" asked Donatello.

"Hmm… no," said Naomi. "You don't look like a bad guy."

_Could it be… that she still feels the bond we had? Maybe her memory__ might be erased, but not our bond…_

For some reason, it made him happy. He smiled at her and patted her head.

"Thanks," he said. "Now you get back to bed and I'll get out of here."

"Wish I could get out of here like that," mumbled Naomi.

"You will… very soon," said Donatello.

Naomi didn't understand, but Donatello pointed at her bed and she did as he said. Why she was listening to him was another mystery for her.

"Goodbye," whispered Donatello. He opened the door and turned the lights off. Naomi went back to sleep. Donatello looked at her one last time before he closed the door and snuck out.

_Our bond is still intact. She just hasn't got a clue. Maybe, just maybe, we'll meet again someday. If all humans were like her, we wouldn't have to hide from them. I wonder if we'll ever meet another human again._

And they did. About two months later, April fell into their lives and that was the start of a complete twist. They made new friends, enemies, allies. But together with April, Irma and all the others, they got through every obstacle, and enjoyed life while fighting for their lives and against the Foot. They had obeyed their master and forgotten about Naomi… or had they?

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**That's it, that's the end of this fanfic. I had a great time writing this and I think it's too bad it's already come to an end. I'd like to thank all of you for reading the whole thing, you're making me really happy with this! Thank you soooo much!**

**Finally, I'd like to point out to the_ sequel_ of this fanfic, the title will be "Long Lost Sister". I've just finished the first chapter.**

**Warning: the sequel will be a T-rated story because of violence!**

**Once again, thank you very, very much for reading!! =^___^= And hopefully, I'll see you again in the next story! Bye bye!**


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